The End of the Line? E.A.Mallia

The EC has recently been giving a good deal of attention to some of the infringement procedures still operational against Malta. The two of interest here are those relating to hunting in Spring and to song-bird trapping.

The process related to possible infringements of the Wild Birds Directive through use of a derogation allowing hunting for two species (turtle dove and quail) in Spring (SHD) was opened as long ago as 2009 and has dragged interminably. The ECJ found against Malta on the grounds of poor regulation of the SHD but concluded (on the basis of hear-say) that the Autumn migration of quail and turtle dove was so limited that an SHD was justified. That case has now been closed. The Commission said that the decision to close down the infringement proceedings takes into consideration an extensive report on the spring hunting season in 2014 which was submitted by the Maltese government to the Commission. I do not know what Report the government submitted to the Commission and going by previous experience the Commission will not accede to any citizen request for information in these matters. It deems such material to be confidential, and possibly as salve to an uneasy conscience, glibly “assumes” that governments always inform their citizens.

There is “extensive report” compiled by EcoServe which, while centred on Autumn 2014 has much data on Spring 2014 and earlier years. That Report carries good evidence that the bag reporting methods used by the hunters are widely abused and that current official checks cannot control that abuse. More to the point, the central pillar of the derogation: an Autumn migration passage so poor that a Spring hunting season is necessary, hitherto based on bag numbers supplied by hunters, has not stood up to its first real test over the 2014 Spring and Autumn seasons.

The EC praises Malta for improved enforcement leading to fewer cases of shooting of protected species; but this is irrelevant as justification for the SHD, shooting of protected species being illegal anyway. The arbitrary closure of hunting seasons – twice in succession Autumn 2014 and Spring 2015 – and the ridiculously heavy penalties for shooting protected species are just a smokescreen to cover the fact that the “poor Autumn passage case” has been based on bag numbers which are open to manipulation. But correct reporting of bag figures is vital and on that the evidence points in the negative direction. The Commission may be simply turning a blind eye or else is being quite naïve in its uncritical acceptance of information from Malta.

There is now a new assessment of the status of the European turtle dove population. A decline ranging over 39% to 49% over the last 16 years has changed the status from one of “least concern” to one of “vulnerable”, the first of three categories for species in danger of extinction. That together with evidence from the EcoServe report should lead to a serious revaluation of the Spring 2016 derogation.

Of course we will be told that the number of turtle doves caught here is very small compared to the catch in other EU countries. That assertion contains one “miscalculation” and possibly a twist as well. The latter would arise from deliberate manipulation of bag reports particularly in Autumn. In that season low bags are “the norm”. That bolsters the “poor Autumn migration” case and would also increase the allowed total bag for the following Spring. But the “miscalculation” arises precisely because Malta is the only EU country that allows Spring hunting for turtle doves. The Spring bag numbers making up the major part of the total bag, even if accurate, cannot be taken at face value in terms of population effects. Every pair shot before having had a chance to breed eliminates four or six potential offspring. So our spring catch may not be so “insignificant after all.

The resurrected song bird trapping season is a total mess. Trapping was mentioned in the 2004 Acquis as a practice to be phased out by 2008, which it was. However early in 2014, Parliamentary Secretary Roderick Galdes in the Ministry for the Environment suddenly claimed to have found a flaw in the “law”. The Ornis Committee took the hint, worked out a modest quota of 26,850 birds for the 5-month season and worked out a set of rules for trapping sites and equipment, which rules were widely ignored with impunity.

No reports of actual trapping catches have been published to date, but just after Ornis recommended the opening of the Autumn 2015 trapping season, the commission issued a second and final warning to desist. Failure to do so – and this gallant little David has already defied the European Goliath – will lead to ECJ proceedings. But the pace of EC justice should allow a few more open seasons for trappers.